Friendship Graffiti
by practicingproductivity
Summary: This is the story of how Catra accidentally caught feelings. And how that drawing of her and Adora ended up on the wall.


**Notes from my original Tumblr post: So it's 1am and I kind of wrote a thing. And it's barely edited. This takes place at some point in their teenage years before the events of the show (obviously). Thank you horde-princess for the free prompt! I had a lot of fun writing this :)**

**.**

"Where did you even get that?" Adora asked, a quarter of a smile tugging on her lips as she looked - with one brow raised - at the two pieces of chalk Catra was holding between her waggling fingers.

The usual mischievous glint in Catra's feline eyes was accompanied by a spark of smugness. "I get around."

"You snuck out into the city? By yourself?" Adora's eyebrow climbed higher.

"I _do _do things without you sometimes," Catra said with a shrug.

"I'm hurt you didn't take me." Adora's shoulders drooped.

Adora was faking it, Catra knew. But she was still a little taken in by those big blue eyes, her gaze lingering a little too long on Adora's pouting lip. Catra wrenched her focus away and onto the wall she was about to deface - forcing that fluttery feeling in her chest to still. Her tail curled protectively around her legs.

Quickly recomposing herself Catra turned back to her friend, flashing a toothy grin. "You wouldn't have been able to keep up."

"I'll make you eat those words."

"I'd like to see you try." Catra brought her face within inches of Adora's. They were two storm clouds about to collide, their eyes alight with electricity. What would happen if they crashed together. Catra wanted to shove her down and tumble just to see who would really come out on top if they held nothing back.

The blonde cadet leaned back with a smirk. "I'll take that as a challenge. So what do you plan on doing with that anyway?" She nodded at the chalk.

Catra just grinned. With a flourish of her wrist she lifted the tip of one piece towards the wall by Adora's bunk. A hand gripped her forearm.

Adora's eyes were wide with alarm. "You could get in _so_ much trouble if you do that!"

"I know. That's why I'm drawing it in your bunk." Catra tried to free herself but her friend's grasp was firm.

Then in a flurry of flailing limbs she was on her back with the wind knocked out of her and Adora glaring down at her.

"Vandalize your own bunk!"

Catra swept a leg into Adora's knees, Adora joining her on her back. "Well it kind of _is _my bunk in a way, isn't it?" Catra rolled on top of her. She lowered her mouth close to Adora's ear, delighting in the way the tickle of her warm breath caused the other girl to shiver. "I sleep here too."

Adora's head thudded against hers. Catra's hand flew the spot that had been butted. That was going to leave a lump. Adora capitalized on this, reversing their positions. She seized Catra's arms, bringing them together and pinning them under one of her own. Her knees had her legs pinned in place too. With her free hand, Adora wrestled free the chalk that Catra had been clenching in her fist.

"Technically it's still mine." Adora kept her face well out of headbutting range. "Which means I get to decide what to draw here."

"You just have to think you can do everything better than me," Catra snorted.

"That too," Adora said as she made the first stroke with the pink chalk.

Catra writhed as best she could but she was firmly held in place. Her limbs tingled with the pressure keeping them down. "What happened to staying out of trouble?"

"Oh, this will be worth it," Adora replied with a crooked grin.

Catra had to twist her head to see. Even at the odd angle, the finished product was unmistakable. "Wow. It's you. How original," she drawled.

"I'm not done yet." Adora switched the pink for the blue.

Catra groaned as she made another half-hearted escape attempt. She rolled her eyes and her ears flicked irritably at the scratching of chalk against the wall.

"There. Now I'm done." Adora looked pridefully at her handiwork.

Catra twisted again. Next to Adora's self-portrait was a drawing of Catra with her Horde headpiece on. As she looked between the drawings and Adora's beaming face, a warm swell of emotion invaded Catra's chest - too much this time to push back down. She didn't need to be brought up on fairy tales to know what this feeling was. It bubbled up in her throat, rendering her speechless. Adora didn't need to say it out loud for Catra to know her friend felt the same. Because Adora had already said this stupid friendship graffiti was worth her risking punishment. And she'd done it. Because she thought Catra was worth it.

"Why do I look like a vampire?" Catra asked when she finally regained the ability to speak.

"You mean the fangs sticking out? I think they're cute!" said Adora.

Adora's face was both honest and slightly patronizing and Catra couldn't stop the heat blossoming in her cheeks.

"Ugh. Will you just get off me already?"

"Only if you promise to take me on your next city adventure."

"Fine, I promise! Now get off."

Adora released her. "Great. It's a date."

Catra's traitorous heart fluttered at the word 'date' even if she knew Adora didn't mean it like that. At that moment she wished nothing more than to reach inside her own chest and crush it so she could stop feeling like a fool.

Catra sat up, carefully schooling her expression. "It'll be a very lonely date though, since you won't be able to keep up."

"We'll see about that." Adora slipped off the bed with the chalk in her hand and made towards the door, tossing that last comment over her shoulder.

Once she was gone, Catra took another look at the drawing and fought back a groan. This was definitely a thing that was happening. And the first word that came to mind was "Crap."


End file.
